Samsung Electronics Co. denied Monday an allegation by a civic group that children under the age of 16 have been employed by its Chinese supplier HEG Electronics Co. after a nearly monthlong inspection. In early August, New York-based labor rights group China Labor Watch released a 31-page report on the Chinese partner of the South Korean tech giant, saying the Chinese firm employed children aged

Moody's on Monday lowered the European Union's long-term issuer rating outlook from stable to negative, saying the move reflected the negative outlooks of the bloc's key budget contributors."It is reasonable to assume that the EU's creditworthiness should move in line with the creditworthiness of its strongest key member states," it said, citing negative outlooks for Britain, France, Germany and t

Iran on Monday gave Mongolia's president a tour of its main uranium enrichment plant, the first time that it has opened the site to a foreign leader.The visit by President Tsakhia Elbegdorj follows a summit of emerging nations in Tehran that Iranian officials said would showcase the failure of Western sanctions to isolate Iran diplomatically.State TV showed Elbegdorj inspecting centrifuges used to

Rafael Nadal has a partially torn patella tendon in his left knee and will be sidelined for at least the next two months, including Spain's upcoming Davis Cup semifinal against the United States.“I have to recover and I'll be back once the pain is gone,” Nadal said in a website posting linked to his Twitter feed.The 11-time Grand Slam champion has been out of action since losing in the second roun

A strong typhoon which hit North Korea last week killed 48 people and left more than 50 injured or missing, the country's state news agency said on Monday.Typhoon Bolaven pounded the Korean peninsula last Tuesday, leaving a trail of death and damage in the two Koreas. In addition to the casualties, 21,180 people were left homeless by the storm, which destroyed or inundated 6,700 houses, toppled mo

Ruling Saenuri Party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye met with Ven. Jaseung, the head of the Jogye Order, South Korea's largest Buddhist sect, on Monday to win support for her campaign to promote national unity.The 60-year-old lawmaker who won her party's presidential nomination on Aug. 20 held talks with the monk and stressed that pushing for national unity could lead to the happiness of the

A South Korean TV actress has canceled her plan to visit Japan, her entertainment agency said Monday, after a Japanese network suspended the broadcast of a television drama starring her amid heightened diplomatic tension over the South Korean islets of Dokdo. Ku Hye-sun planned to visit Japan on Monday and Tuesday to attend events to mark the release of a DVD set of "Absolute Darling," a Taiwanese

In the heart of Aleppo, besieged by Syrian troops for more than five weeks, a young couple who found love in a time of war exchange vows.Bombs dropped in the distance, but for a moment, those attending the modest wedding ceremony in the Saif al-Dawla neighbourhood of Syria's second city were able to forget about the bloody conflict.The marriage was between rebel sniper Abu Khaled and Hanan, the nu

Like most Palestinian teens, Bashaer Othman goes back to school this week after a long summer break. But rather than hanging out with friends, this 16-year-old has spent the past two months serving as mayor of a small town in the northern West Bank.Sitting at a large desk in front of three framed photographs of president Mahmud Abbas, prime minister Salam Fayyad and veteran nationalist leader Yass

California lawmakers have passed a bill that could make the state the second in the United States to approve self-driving cars on its roads.The bill, passed unanimously by the state senate, will go to Gov. Jerry Brown, who is expected to sign it into law, TG Daily reported Friday.Under the law, the California Department of Motor Vehicles would be required to create standards and licensing procedur

Internet addiction may have a molecular basis, German researchers say, linked to a genetic variation that also plays a major role in nicotine addiction.Researchers at the University of Bonn studying people and their Internet habits found a significant number who exhibit problematic behavior, where all their thoughts revolve around the Internet during the day and they feel their well-being is sever

South Korea's industrial output shrank for the second straight month in July, raising concerns the country's economy might be faltering in the face of headwinds from the eurozone debt crisis and a global slowdown, a government report showed Friday.According to the report by Statistics Korea, production in the mining, manufacturing, gas and electricity industries fell 1.6 percent in July from a mon

An Atlanta non-profit said it will paint over a controversial public mural of a woman in various states of undress.Nathan Bolster, executive director of operations for the non-profit Living Walls Conference, said the group commissioned the concrete wall mural from Spanish artist Hyuro and the work was completed about two weeks ago, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported Thursday.However, Bolste